Family Filter TV
How automatic profanity filtering works
Family Filter TV reads the subtitles for what you are watching, checks each line against the filter strength you chose, and mutes the sound for exactly that line. The picture keeps playing and the sound comes straight back.
The short version
It finds the subtitles
Family Filter TV finds the subtitles for the film or episode you are watching.
It checks each line
Every line is checked against the strength you chose: mild, family or strict (or off).
It mutes the matching line
When a line matches, the sound is muted for that line only, then returns. Nothing is cut, blurred or skipped.
What do mild, family and strict mean?
| Setting | What it mutes |
|---|---|
| Off | No filtering. |
| Mild | Strong profanity, slurs and explicit sexual language. |
| Family | Mild, plus milder profanity and religious exclamations. This is the default. |
| Strict | Family, plus crude and suggestive language. |
You set it once, on your phone, for the whole household. Every linked television follows. Only swearing in speech is muted: violence and nudity are not filtered.
Two ways to use it
Play through Stremio
Choose Family Filter TV as Stremio’s external player. Start anything in Stremio and it plays already filtered. Stremio profanity filter has the details.
Follow along with other apps
Watch in another app on your Android TV or Google TV, such as Netflix. Pick the same film or episode in Family Filter TV on your Android phone, and the TV mutes the swearing for that title. How to mute swearing on Netflix has the steps.
How does it know where you are in the film?
With Netflix on your Android TV, the TV reads where you are in the film by itself. When the TV or a Windows computer cannot tell, your phone finds the place by listening to a few seconds of clear dialogue, then keeps the subtitles in step. The sound is turned into words on the phone itself and compared there with the subtitles. It is never stored or sent anywhere. The privacy policy says the same, and If it is not in sync covers what to do when a film drifts.
What it cannot do
- It is best effort. A line can slip through, especially in songs or when the subtitles differ from what is said.
- It needs subtitles. No subtitles for a title means no filtering, and the app says so.
- English titles only for now.
- It does not play or provide anything. Family Filter TV does not host, index or redistribute video. You watch in your own apps.
- It does not work inside the built-in apps of Samsung, LG and other non-Android TVs. A Google TV or Android TV stick in an HDMI port does. See Will it work on my TV?
See it work
The 30-second demo shows a real film line with one word muted and the sound coming straight back, with the transcript written out. For the full comparison of tools, see movie filtering services compared.
Try it
Choose a 30-day or 1-year plan after your 14-day free trial — current prices are shown in Google Play.
Questions
Does automatic profanity filtering cut or blur the film?
No. Family Filter TV only drops the sound for the length of the matching line and brings it straight back. Nothing is cut, blurred or skipped.
Does it work without subtitles?
No. Subtitles are what it checks, so filtering cannot work without them. The app tells you plainly when it cannot find any for a title.
Is every swear word caught?
No. Muting is best effort. A line can slip through, especially in songs or when the subtitles differ from what is said.
Is the audio recorded or sent anywhere?
No. When your phone listens to find your place in a film, the sound is turned into words on the phone and compared there with the subtitles. Nothing is stored or sent anywhere.
Which languages does it filter?
English titles only for now.